Where along the way did we forget how to build affordable cars pumped full of adrenaline? Not so long ago, there were inexpensive compacts that could knock your socks off for the price of a Honda Civic – and even that was excellent then, too.
All automakers were making something affordable, even giving them conversation pieces nobody else thought to pack into their compacts. Over at Mazda, the pint-sized MX-3 was its prime example of cheap intrigue, and it was born for the same reason as many other Japanese sweethearts: tax codes.
How Japan’s Tax Code Pushed Mazda To Build A Six-Cylinder Nobody Expected
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Put simply, Japan levies taxes on engine size and vehicle weight. Other taxes include a sales tax and vehicle acquisition tax, which isn’t so different from those in the US and other countries around the world. Manufacturers will generally take these into consideration when designing a car, ensuring the engine matches the duty it’s performing and is affordable for the target audience. This led to small-displacement engines from a spread of manufacturers that churned out impish power figures but were built to handle three-to-four times the horsepower.
Mazda, among other manufacturers, was building engines constrained by low displacement and was decidedly against creeping over the 2.0-liter threshold and into a new tax bracket for its small vehicles. This got engineers tinkering with a completely new engine. That, combined with the fresh winds of a booming economy, which filled Mazda’s coffers with enough yen, was enough to let the company try something new.
The idea? A small-displacement V6 for use in an upcoming compact coupe. It needed to be economical and emit less CO2 than a cough, not to mention good “acceleration and top-end feel” for highway cruising. The result, however, came close enough to what Mazda wanted but never reached its full potential.
The MX-3’s K8-DE V6 (Legally) Cheated Tax Codes
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At 1.8 liters of displacement, Mazda’s compact V6 was small enough to fall into the lower tax brackets, but strong enough to handle its daily duties in the MX-3. The all-aluminum quad-cam V6 whipped 130 horses and 115 lb-ft of torque with a 9.7:1 compression ratio and a 7,000 rpm redline with a fuel cutoff around 7,500–7,800.
Low displacement wasn’t the only trick up its sleeve to produce peak power at 6,500 rpm, however. Some of the credit is owed to multipoint fuel injection and Mazda’s own Variable Resonance Induction System (VRIS), an electronically controlled intake that alters how air flows through runners in the manifold.
That intake system helped the V6 produce ample torque throughout the rev range, providing solid acceleration despite the small displacement. A precise 5-speed manual returned more command over the engine if the 4-speed automatic wasn’t for you. At the time, the MX-3 contained the smallest production V6 engine in the US. A few have claimed the global title, including Mitsubishi’s 1.6-liter and the Mercedes-AMG One’s Formula 1-inspired 1.6 turbo hybrid unit, but Mazda held the title in markets where Mitsubishi’s V6 was absent.
Mazda MX-3 FrontMazda
It was developed to fit between (and power) the front wheels and, of course, slide in under the Japanese tax bracket for larger engines. K-Series engines were later offered in 2.0 and 2.5-liter variants, powering the 626 and MX-6 here in the States and others around the world. The MX-3 made a name for itself and its gem of an engine, even out-gunning the competition on paper in terms of standard features, but something kept it from outselling everything else in its class. What could it have been?
It had an adorable face and the roundness of all other 90s cars, even hiding some styling cues inspired by the RX-7. Interestingly, it wasn’t just styling Mazda’s engineers were trying to invoke with their latest coupe. It was its powertrain, too. That’s not to say they considered a rotary engine, though. Engineers figured they could recapture the turbine-like smoothness of the Wankel rotary with a small-displacement V6, and the result came remarkably close. Unfortunately, it was that kind of thinking that alienated all but the most enthusiastic of drivers.
The K8-DE’s Precision Engineering Had One Fatal Flaw: Nobody Could Modify It
1993 Mazda MX-3Mazda
Die-hard subscribers to Car and Driver in the early ’90s might have taken issue with the little-known MX-3 appearing on the cover. That is, if then-executive editor John Phillips hadn’t waxed enthusiastic as though it came with a glove box full of stimulants and a supermodel riding shotgun. Mind you, the August 1991 print contained pages on the 200 mph+ speeds achieved in a Lamborghini Diablo but was sidelined by the little Mazda.
To anyone who cared to learn about the little engine ticking away with Seiko precision under the hood, the MX-3 was an unparalleled little coupe. Its sub-$15,000 price tag made it even better. When everyone else was relying on tiny four-cylinders that required a trip to redline for usable power, Mazda made the drive a journey worth looking forward to. The turbine-like smoothness came through, and the V6’s heartier, near-tenor bellow under full throttle was a welcome contrast to the high-pitched soprano note produced by the equivalent Honda.
The rotary-powered Mazda RX-7 offers a unique and cool take on the rear-wheel drive sports car genre.Bring A Trailer
In terms of reliability, any conventional piston engine would surely outperform a rotary. And the K8-DE V6 did, but not without help from four-bolt main bearing caps and forged steel components like the crankshaft and connecting rods. These things were built to last. Yet reliability didn’t stop some owners from swapping out the 1.8-liter for the larger 2.5 pulled from the MX-6 – sort of the “big-block” engine swap of the Mazda K-Series world.
The MX-3 ultimately fell out of favor against Hondas, Toyotas, and even the Acura Integra, for reasons that remain unclear. The engine wasn’t used across a wide range of vehicles, nor were there parts available for aftermarket modifications – part of the allure of Japanese sports cars that worked around the dreaded tax code.
The MX-3 also had sport-tuned suspension and a passive rear-wheel steering system like the one pioneered by the Porsche 928. It had everything it needed to be excellent, which it was, but lacked the buyers to be successful.
A Lack Of Love From All Killed The MX-3
1993 Mazda MX-3Mazda
Those who were privy to the secret of the MX-3 knew Mazda had answered the call to make the best economical sports coupe with a recipe nobody else was trying at this scale. Model years spanned from 1992 to 1998, and the coupe was never replaced. The engine was expensive to create and wasn’t commercially successful in its smallest form. It would have done wonders with the MX-5, but Mazda didn’t entertain the idea because it disrupted the roadster’s perfect weight distribution.
The Japanese tax code still exists today and continues to influence decisions about what cars are sold in the country. While Honda, Toyota, and Nissan have expanded production globally and are no longer restricted by what engines their cars can have, Mazda still produces the MX-5 and others for the global market. It’s still a prime example that fun doesn’t have to always come in big numbers, not to mention the result of a tax code that forces companies to think outside the box.
1993 Mazda MX-3Mazda
If the MX-3 had received a successor, it would have reluctantly been given a four-cylinder to keep engineering costs low and prices affordable. There is no doubt it would have received scrutiny from journalists to no avail, because when companies broaden their appeal, they abandon the drivers who will champion it over Italian supercars.
Base Trim Engine
2.0-Liter I4
Base Trim Transmission
6-Speed Manual
Base Trim Drivetrain
Rear-Wheel Drive
Base Trim Horsepower
181 HP @ 7,000 RPM
Base Trim Torque
151 LB-FT @ 4,000 RPM
Infotainment & Features
6 /10
Sources: Car and Driver, Car Magazine, Hotcars
